This invention relates to an electric current conducting assembly, more specifically with the incorporation of a dead end shoe.
Users of electrical power are often located great distances from the sources of electrical energy. Electricity generated by powerplants, hydroelectric dams, and the like is made available to end users through large, high-capacity, high-voltage, overhead powerline assemblies. These powerline assemblies generally consist of conductors suspended by towers or utility poles that allow for the dissemination of electrical current to consumers from a myriad of sources. When maintenance on these assemblies is required, linemen often perform the maintenance while suspended by a harness from the utility pole or tower; other times, a lifted bucket is used.
At certain points throughout the overhead powerline assembly, the main conductor lines are capped or terminated with metal devices known as dead-end shoes or dead-end shoe assemblies. Many different designs of dead-end shoes exist, but the ultimate purpose is the same: to terminate the conducting line. Generally, dead-end shoes cap or terminate the conductors and facilitate their attachment to insulators located on a tower or pole, effectively containing the current within that length of conducting line. This allows for easier maintenance of the overall powerline assembly, breaking the system and current up into multiple smaller and more-manageable pieces. However, oftentimes, the current must still be transmitted from dead-ended main conductors to the next adjacent dead-ended main conductors to supply electricity further down the powerline assembly. This is accomplished through secondary conductors known as tap or jumper lines that connect dead-ended conductor segments to one another, transmitting the current from an “energized” or “hot” conductor to a “de-energized” or “cold” conductor further downstream.
There are multiple types of connectors that facilitate linkage between the main conductor lines and the jumper lines, dubbed tap-connectors. These tap-connectors are oftentimes completely separate devices from the dead-end shoes that cap or terminate the main conductors, and they are placed further back on the main conductor lines behind the dead-end shoe. Made of metal, the tap-connectors allow for the conduction of electrical current from an energized line to a de-energized line. Many of these tap-connectors have a similar problem of being very difficult or even impossible to remove from the main conductor or jumper once put into place. For example, H-tap connectors clamp two different cables together by bending the metal frame around each conducting line. While it is possible to remove the H-tap from each of the lines, it is difficult to do so; it requires unbending the metal frame of the connector. It is much easier and safer for the lineman to just cut the conducting line behind the H-tap and splice in a new piece of line. Similarly, wedge-connectors create more-permanent connections that are difficult to undo. These connectors consist of a C-shaped metal component with grooves to accommodate two conducting cables. A metal wedge is then inserted, often with a powder cartridge, into the component between the two lines, effectively wedging the cables into the C-component groves. Removing the wedge after it is inserted, while maybe possible, is often time-consuming and arduous for the lineman performing the maintenance. This usually means that when maintenance of the powerline assembly requires the relocation or removal of either the jumper line, the tap-connector, or a part of the main conductor line, the easier and safer route for the lineman performing the maintenance is to simply clip the conducting line behind the tap-connector; a new length of cable would then be spliced into the conducting line to obtain the length needed to reach the closest tower or pole.
The problem that different types of traditional tap-connectors pose to power line maintenance is two-fold: there is increased risk to linemen who perform maintenance on powerline assemblies, and the process demanded by such connectors is wasteful of materials and time. Linemen often work on powerline assemblies while suspended dozens of feet in the air. The less time they are suspended, the safer they ultimately are. Additionally, tap-connectors are separate and independent devices in the powerline assembly, yet another task in-and-of-themselves for linemen to focus on. Because of the precarious position that linemen are in when performing maintenance, it is extremely important that they remain focused on safety procedures. One mistake and they could plummet to their death or touch an energized line by accident and electrocute themselves. That being the case, the less tasks they must juggle while suspended, the safer they are. Currently, tap-connectors are located behind dead-end shoes, requiring the lineman to reach out farther from his place of suspension to perform any type of maintenance that may be required at that point in the assembly, increasing the overall risk of accident. This risk is compounded if the lineman must attempt to remove the tap-connector from the main conductor or jumper line while suspended. As previously stated, the removal of tap-connectors is nigh impossible, and the more force that the lineman must exert while suspended increases his chance of falling or inadvertently touching an energized cable. Even if the tap-connector is clipped out of the main conductor, the lineman still must then splice a new piece of cable into the main conductor to enable it to reach the utility pole or tower, again increasing their suspension time and dividing their focus.
In addition to the safety issues associated with using traditional tap-connectors, the practice is also extremely wasteful of materials and time. The main conductor is usually clipped behind the tap-connector, and that entire clipped piece of cable is usually discarded. The jumper line itself is also usually discarded due to the difficulty of removing the tap-connector from either the main conductor or the tap conductor. As such, the tap-connector itself is also rarely, if ever, reused; it is discarded along with the rest of the removed components. Also, the process requires that a piece of cable be spliced into the main conductor, wasting time and keeping the lineman suspended for longer.